Parachutes
by SomewhereOnlyWeKnow9
Summary: Just when you thought they were getting their happy ending, fighting threatens to destroy the Sanders family. Is little Karsyn going to grow up without a mother? Or will Morgan finally say the words to make it right? The dramatic finally of the "Violet Hill" series. If you're lazy, read alone. Co-written with InsaneOnTheInside.


__**Here it is. The end. As the late great Dr. Seuss once said, "Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." **

**Well, he can KISS MY ASS. **

**I'm going to cry because it's over. Honestly, it was so fun to write all of this. I owe it all to GENIUS Morgan, aka InsaneOnTheInside. A you probably know, she wrote Morgan and is AMAZING. I can only hope I have like a 10nth of her amazing writing skills.**

***puts on cheerleader costume and begins to act super peppy* Give me an R! Give me an E! Give me the rest of the letters to spell review because I'm too lazy to type all of them! What does that spell? REVIEW!**

**We love all of you guys, thanks for reading!**

* * *

_Morgan_

* * *

"I just wanna see Daddy," Karsyn grumbled as we walk onto the porch. Her blonde hair is straight today, for once. It usually depends on which way she sleeps, but today it's straight. And her blue eyes are glaring right at me. "Why can't I?"

"Daddy's taking his exam, kiddo," I sighed, fumbling slowly with my keys. She detached from my hand, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall. "What?"

"It's his birthday!" she protested, rolling her eyes. "Come on, Mommy. Pleeeasseee."

"It's out of my control, sweetheart," I reminded her, for what seemed like the millionth time since I'd picked her up from preschool. "Daddy has to finish all his tests so he can graduate this month, just like you."

"How come all of your tests are done then?" she inquired, entering the house as I opened the door, casually tossing her backpack onto the couch. "Hmm?"

"We took different classes," I told her shortly, and she just narrowed her eyes, and knew then that she saw through it. "What?"

"Cuz you're gonna be his boss?" she snapped, and I closed my eyes, putting my head in my hands and running a hand through the mess. "Is that why you're always arguing?"

"No," I replied quietly, and she rolled her eyes, storming out of the room. I didn't want to tell her why Greg and I had been arguing lately. His stress with exams was pretty high, and I'd been at the community college taking the last of my required AA classes. Ever since I'd told him I didn't want to move to Las Vegas with him, it'd been a constant battle. I knew he'd been offered a great job, but I planned on finishing my education. Taking two years off to be with Karsyn hadn't exactly been the plan, and now it was really biting me in the ass.

The door swung open, shutting slowly. I turned around and pulled a beer out of the fridge, setting it down on the counter for him. He walked through slowly, looking happy enough. He sent me his usual stunning smile, which still made me blush.

"Where's Karsyn?" he asked curiously, looking around as he popped open the cap of his beer.

"In her room," I told him, pouring myself a glass of wine and sipping on it quietly. "Why?"

"Just wanted to see her," he said casually, examining me. "You okay, Morgs?"

"I've had better days," I admitted honestly, and he looked away, telling me he saw through my act and knew what it was about. Which was where Karsyn got her smarts from. And her attitude. "How did you feel about that last exam?"

"Great," he told me, nodding, but clearly not dropping the subject, which I didn't expect him to. "So, I got a phone call from that guy in Vegas today."

I pursed my lips and raised my eyebrows. "Did you now?"

"He wants me to start in July," he continued on, biting his lip. "Their DNA girl just quit, and they're kind of screwed. So we've got 2 months to get out of here, basically."

"I already told you that I'm not going though," I growled, my teeth clenched. I didn't want to go back to Vegas, with my dad and all those memories-

"For God's sake, Morgan, you don't have to talk to him," he sighed, shaking his head and massaging the bridge of his nose. "Seriously. Get over it."

"Shut up," I snapped finally. "Karsyn knows we're fighting. And her teacher told me today that she's been giving her attitude, and she even asked if everything was okay between us."

"Is it too much for you?" he asked, looking intrigued. "Is raising a kid that you couldn't separate yourself from…is it too much now, Morgan?"

"I can handle it, but not in Vegas," I sneered, and he rolled his eyes, clearly angry. "I need a break, Greg. I think we both need one. From each other."

"Well just because you've been so emotional and touchy about everything lately doesn't mean you can just take my kid and beat it, Morgan!" he scoffed, crossing his arms.

"Fine," I said softly, looking at the floor. "You can take her then."

He stared at me for a long while before setting his beer down and walking down the hallway. I heard a door opening and closed my eyes.

"Daddy!" Karsyn's voice squealed, and I could hear Greg laughing. "Did you get an A+?"

"I think so, baby," he chuckled, and she laughed softly, her's matching his so perfectly. "Hey, get your stuff together. You and I are going on a trip."

"Where to?" she asked, her voice now further away from him, making me assume she was packing. "And why isn't Mommy coming?"

"Mommy is taking her own vacation, to relax," he told her, and tears welled up in my eyes. "And we're heading to a big city called Las Vegas."

Five minutes later, Greg carried her out, her arms clinging to his neck. "You're sure about this? Speak now or forever hold your peace, you know."

I nodded. "I'll see you two in a while," I said quietly, feeling Karsyn's eyes baring down on me. "Be safe."

"I love you," Greg reminded me, now opening the door. "K does too."

"Yeah, love you mommy!" she called. Greg paused before finally shutting the door behind him. As I heard the car pull out of the driveway, I erupted in sobs.

I had made the biggest mistake of my life.

* * *

**Greg **

* * *

I missed her.

I missed her smile.

I missed her laugh.

I missed her big blue eyes.

I missed her.

The hill was turning purple now, the sun setting over Los Angeles in a way I knew she would love. Maybe she was watching it too. Maybe she was halfway across the world by now. The sad truth was, I didn't know.

Karsyn lay asleep next to me, her curly blonde locks illuminated by the last of the sun. It was so funny. Once upon a time, a long time ago, I slipped her a note in chem class. We were kids. We didn't know what we had just created. We didn't know that by meeting on that hill, we were writing a story that would end up in tragedy.

I covered her up with the blanket I had packed in our picnic blanket and kissed her head. She loved the hill. I almost wanted to wake her, to show her the way the way Violet Hill was turning pink and purple and gold in the sunset. But she was smiling in her sleep. So I let her dream, standing up and walking to the edge of the year on the anniversary of the day Morgan and I shared at fateful kiss, Karsyn and I drive down to LA and ate dinner on the hill. She was seven now, and I didn't want her to forget, or even worse, resent Morgan. So I told he stories about the way her mom sang in her sleep, the look in her eye when she knew I was lying about eating the last cookie, the magical sound of her laughter, her determination and uncertainty and bravery. I told her all the small, tiny things that made me fall in love with her. She always smiled at them, sometimes she cried too. Sometimes she asked where mom was, why she wasn't here. And I told her that her mother loved us both so much that she couldn't even stay in the same city as us. I said her mother had so much love for us she couldn't even breathe when she saw us. And I guess it was true.

"She's got your smarts, Morg," I inform the wind. "Did you know that? Well, of course you knew that. But she's really smart, Morg. It's a pain in the ass sometimes," I let out a little laugh. "And a few weeks ago, she put ink on the microscopes at the lab. Like half of the people at the lab had raccoon eyes. Might be a better prankster then me, believe it or not." I pause for a moment.

The beautiful colors of the sunset have been replaced by gray.

"Huh. Guess the rain likes the hill as much as we do. I swear, there hasn't been a single time we've been here without rain." My voice cracks. I don't want it to, but it does. I miss her. I miss her so bad, it hurts. It physically hurts.

"So, apparently Karsyn has a crush on a boy named Kade in her class. Yep. Tall, spiky hair, funny, handsome, smart. Guess you Ecklie, sorry, Brody woman have good taste," I let out a little laugh. "But she asked a girl at the lab, Sara, for advice on what to do. And it just killed me. It fucking killed me. Because that was supposed to be you. Because you were supposed to dress her up as a princess for Halloween. Because you were supposed to do her markup for the class play. Because you were supposed to be there." And that's all I need. I just start crying. I sink down to the ground and let myself sob. Because she was the love of my life. And I just left her. All these years, just thinking that she let my leave. But I left. In the end, I could've stayed. I could've turned down the offer.

"I miss you, Morgs," I whisper to the wind. "I really, really miss you." It's getting dark now. I put in my earphones and stand up. I gather some food, toys, coloring books, blankets and photos and place them back in the picnic basket. Carrying it in one hand, I lift up Karsyn. Being a single dad, I've mastered the art of multitasking.

"Ahh!" I quickly yank out my ear buds.

"Wow. You scare easily, huh?"

"Jesus, Morgan! What the hell!" I turn around. Holy shit. "Morgan?"

"Hi, Greg." She whispers. I can't breathe. She flashes me a small smile. I'm shaking so badly I'm scared I'll drop Karsyn.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, trying to regain composure. "I think the better question is, what are you doing here? You live in Las vegas, working for Conrad, remember?"

"How could I forget, Ecklie?" Her smile falls. She looks down, stares at Karsyn. Her eyes are full of a deep sadness, one I haven't seen since the day I took Karsyn and left. "

She grew, huh?" She comments, staring.

"Two years will do that to a kid."

"You look different."

"I guess two year will do that to anyone," She gives me a small smile.

Whoever said you couldn't break a broken heart was wrong.

"Look, I got to go. I have work tomorrow, and Karsyn has school tomorrow." As if on cue, Karsyn wraps her hands around my neck. So I turn around and start to walk down the hill.

"Wait, Greg, please," I don't turn around. I can't turn around. I know that if I do, she'll say something that'll make it impossible for me to leave. "Greg."

"Why didn't you come after us?" My voice is filled with so much rage, I'm surprised Karsyn doesn't wake up. "Maybe I shouldn't have left. Maybe I shouldn't have taken the job. But you didn't come after us! You let your four year old daughter leave. You let me take her!"

"And you don't think thats the biggest mistake of my life? You don't think I wake up every morning and wish you were next to me? You think a day doesn't go by that I don't hear Karsyn's voice all over the house? You think that I haven't gotten in my car and driven down to the edge of Vegas? You think I don't love you?"

And there it is.

The words she's never said to me. The words she's hasn't said since she was 14 years old.

"Say that again." I say, finally turning around. My body is shaking, my heart is beating a million miles an hour. She looks so scared and uncertain.

"I love you," The skies are dumping down on the both of us. But like that first day, we've created a bubble, in which Mother Nature can't touch us. "I love you. I love. The way you laugh, I love the way you smile, I love the way you spend hours on your hair. I love the way you tell stories to Karsyn, I love the way that you drove to a store 6 miles away to get ice cream for me when I was pregnant. I love you so much I can't breathe sometimes." And she's crying, and I'm crying, and all of the sudden her lips are on mine. And it's the most amazing thing I've ever experienced, kissing her in the rain, Karsyn in my arms.

We're finally a family.

We're finally getting our happy ending.


End file.
